The present invention relates to an automobile door and an automobile door module.
In general, the automobile door is provided with a windowpane for opening and closing a window opening, a door main body having a housing portion disposed under the window opening, which is capable of housing the windowpane, and a window regulator for vertically moving the windowpane between the window opening and the housing portion.
In order to simplify the assembling process, there has proceeded to arrange parts constituting the automobile door in the form of module, recently. An automobile door 70 as shown in FIG. 24 is formed by attaching a door module 90 to a door main body 73 which can be opened and closed with respect to the automobile main body (not shown). The door main body 73 is provided with an inner panel 71 and an outer panel 72. The inner panel 71 and the outer panel 72 are formed integrally by welding or the like so that a space (a housing portion) 78 can be formed between them. The inner panel 71 is provided with a mounting opening 76 for inserting a glass sheet 20 in the door module 90. The inner panel 71 is provided with fitting holes 79a to 79d for fitting the door module 90 to a predetermined position.
Above the door main body 73, a frame-like sash 77 is provided to project therefrom. In this case, a window opening 21 is defined in the portion surrounded by the sash 77 and a belt line mole 73a of the door main body 73. In the case of a so-called hardtop type automobile, the window opening is formed in the portion surrounded by the belt line mole of the door main body and the automobile main body when the door is closed, although not shown.
The door module 90 holds a door equipment such as the glass sheet 20, the regulator and so on integrally. The module frame 91 is formed into a substantially xe2x96xa1-like form in a side view by connecting a first frame 92a of substantially linear form with a second frame 92b of substantially U-letter like form. At predetermined positions in the first frame 92a and the second frame 92b, brackets 93a to 93d are provided. In the brackets 93a to 93d, fitting holes 94a to 94d are provided.
The regulator 81 comprises a carrier plate 85 for supporting the glass sheet 20 and a motor 82 for moving the carrier plate 85 along a guide rail 86. The guide rail 86 is attached to the module frame 91 by means of a fixing means 95a which penetrates the first frame 92a and an upper end of the guide rail 86, and a fixing means 95b which penetrates a lower side of the second frame 92b and a lower end of the guide rail 86. The motor 82 is attached to the module frame 91 by interposing a base plate (seat) 83 for the motor. The module frame 91 is attached with guide members 96a, 96b for guiding a vertical movement of the glass sheet 20 and a latch 97 for locking the door 70 with respect to the automobile main body.
The distance (height) between the upper end and the lower end of the guide rail 86 is formed to be wider than the height (the dimension in a direction of the vertical movement of the glass sheet 20) of the glass sheet 20. Also, the distance (height) between the first frame 92a and the lower side of the second frame 92b is formed to be wider than the height of the glass sheet 20. Namely, the height of the module frame 91 is determined so as to be wider than the height of the glass sheet 20.
When the door module 90 is attached to the door main body, and the carrier plate 85 supporting the glass sheet 20 is at a position where it is moved to the proximity of the lower side of the second frame 92b, the glass sheet 20 is in a state that it is completely housed in the housing portion 78 through the window opening 21 (a full open state of window) (see FIG. 24).
In order to attach the door module 90 to the door main body 73, the glass sheet 20 of the door module 90 is first inserted into the housing portion 78 through the mounting opening 76. Then, the brackets 93a to 93d are disposed on a car interior side surface of the inner panel 71, and the positions of the fitting holes 94a to 94d of the brackets 93a to 93d are aligned with the positions of the fitting holes 79a to 79d of the inner panel 71. Then, fixing means such as clips are inserted into the fitting holes 94a to 94d of the brackets 93a to 93d and the fitting holes 79a to 79d of the inner panel 71. Thus, the door module 90 is attached to the door main body 73.
It is desired that such door module satisfies the following two items: (1) the securing of a predetermined strength-rigidity and (2) weight saving. If predetermined strength-rigidity can not be secured, there causes a problem that the glass sheet can not smoothly be moved vertically between the housing portion and the window opening. A heavy door module makes an attaching work of the door module to the door main body difficult, in addition that it is difficult to save the weight of the automobile. However, an attempt to secure a predetermined strength causes an increase of the weight totally. Accordingly, the items of (1) and (2) contradict each other. This will be explained in detail in the following.
First, the module frame 91 of the door module 90 has the structure described below in order to secure a predetermined strength-rigidity. The module frame 91 has an outer dimension corresponding to the substantially entire region of the mounting opening 76. The dimension in a vertical direction of the module frame 91 is larger than the dimension in a vertical direction of the glass sheet 20. However, a larger dimension of the module frame 91 makes the fitting work of the door module 90 to the door main body 73 difficult. Namely, there is apt to occur interference between the module frame 91 and the inner panel 71 at the time of the fitting work because the dimension of the mounting opening 76 has a certain limit. As the dimension of the module frame 91 is larger, the weight of the door increases.
As means for saving the weight of the door module, it can be considered that a thin belt-like belt is used for the material for constituting the module frame, or the outside dimension of the module frame is made small. Since use of such means causes naturally the reduction of the strength.rigidity, it is necessary to use a reinforcing member to the module frame. The addition of the reinforcing member increases the number of parts of the door module whereby the door module becomes heavy. In order to secure the strength of the module frame without increasing the number of parts, it is considered to increase the rigidity of each frame member. In order to increase the rigidity of the frame members themselves, there comes that the material for the frame itself is thick or frame member is formed into a cylindrical shape.
As described above, the requirements of (1) the securing of a predetermined strength-rigidity and (2) weight saving contradict each other. The object of the present invention is to provide an automobile door and an automobile door module in which the weight is reduced without causing the reduction of the strength.
As the basic structure for satisfying both requirements of (1) the securing of a predetermined strength-rigidity and (2) weight saving, the inventions having the following structure are provided. An automobile door comprising a door main body having a housing portion which is disposed adjacent to a window opening of an automobile and is capable of housing a windowpane for opening and closing the window opening and a door module housed in the housing portion and attached to the door main body, wherein the door module comprises the windowpane, a door equipment including at least a regulator having a motor for moving the windowpane between the window opening and the housing portion, and a module frame on which the door equipment is integrally held, and wherein the module frame comprises an annularly formed elongated member in a side view, and an automobile door module used for the automobile door.
In this specification, xe2x80x9ca side viewxe2x80x9d is a view in a direction of penetrating the windowpane (in a thickness direction of the windowpane). In this specification, the terms xe2x80x9cfrontxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9crearxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cupperxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9clowerxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cinsidexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9coutsidexe2x80x9d used for expressing a direction or a position means xe2x80x9cfrontxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9crearxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cupperxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9clowerxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cinsidexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9coutsidexe2x80x9d in the case that the automobile door or the automobile door module is attached to the automobile main body.
As the concrete structure for satisfying both requirements of (1) the securing of a predetermined strength.rigidity and (2) weight saving, the first to fourth inventions having further specified structure as described below, are provided. The first invention is the invention concerning the following structure. An automobile door comprising a door main body having a housing portion which is disposed adjacent to a window opening of an automobile and is capable of housing a windowpane for opening and closing the window opening and a door module attached to the door main body, wherein the door module comprises the windowpane and a door equipment including at least a regulator having a motor for moving the windowpane between the window opening and the housing portion, which are integrally held on a module frame, and wherein the module frame is formed into an annular form in a side view; the regulator is provided with a rail for guiding the windowpane when the windowpane is moved by the motor; the motor is disposed in the annulus of the module frame, and at least one end of the rail is projected from the annulus of the module frame and fixed to the door main body.
According to such automobile door, at least one end of the rail of the regulator is projected outside the annular module frame in a side view, and is fixed to the door main body, whereby the strength (rigidity) of the module frame can be improved. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the dimension in a vertical direction of the module frame while a sufficient strength is maintained, and the weight saving of the module frame can be achieved.
It is preferable that the base plate for supporting the motor of the regulator is fixed to the module frame, and the motor is attached to the module frame by means of the base plate. In this case, it is preferable to fix at least an upper edge or a lower edge of the base plate to the module frame. Further, it is preferable that the length between an upper end and a lower end of the base plate (the outside dimension in a vertical direction of the base plate) and the length between an upper end of an upper side and a lower end of a lower side of the module frame (the outside dimension in a vertical direction of the module frame) are substantially in agreement with each other. Thus, a defective operation of the windowpane can be prevented by reducing the outside dimension of the module frame as possible to reduce the weight of the door, and making the fitting work for the door module to the door main body easy.
Incidentally, xe2x80x9csubstantially in agreementxe2x80x9d means that in a range capable of preventing the defective operation of the windowpane while the weight of the door can be reduced and the fitting work for the door module to the door main body can be made easy, the dimensions of the both members are more or less different. As an example that the dimensions of the both members are more or less different, there are such that for example, the base plate is slightly projected from the annulus of the module frame (the outside dimension in a vertical direction of the module frame is more or less smaller than the outside dimension in a vertical direction of the base plate), and either the upper edge or the lower edge of the base plate and a side edge of the base plate are fixed to the module frame (the outside dimension in a vertical direction of the module frame is more or less larger than the outside dimension in a vertical direction of the base plate).
By fixing the rail of the regulator to the door main body, the strength of the module frame could be increased, and by rendering the dimension in a vertical direction of the module frame to be smaller than the dimension in a vertical direction of the guide rail so that the weight of the module frame was reduced, it was possible to provide the automobile door having a reduced weight without causing the reduction of the strength.
The motor is disposed in the annular module frame in a side view to utilize effectively the space in the module frame as a space for housing the motor, whereby the door module can be made small. As a result, the fitting work for the door module to the door main body can be easy.
The guide rail may be fixed to the door main body with its upper end; may be fixed to the door main body with lower door end, or may be fixed to the door may body with its upper and lower ends. When the upper and lower ends of the guide rail are fixed to the door main body, the upper and lower ends of the guide rail have to be projected from the outside of the annulus of the module frame. Accordingly, the module frame itself are not fixed to the door main body in a position above or below the module frame. Accordingly, it is preferable to project either one of the upper and lower ends of the guide rail outside of the annulus of the module frame so that an upper portion or a lower portion of the module frame itself is fixed to the door main body. It is in particular preferable to project the lower end of the guide rail outside of the annulus of the module frame from the viewpoint that a space can be formed in a lower portion of the housing portion of the door.
It is preferable for the module frame to use an elongated member having a C-letter like form (a squarish C-letter like form) in cross section, which has a rear plate and a pair of side plates extending from the rear plate. Thus, it is possible to further improve the strength of the module frame while weight increasing can be suppressed. In this case, it is preferable that the rear plate of the module frame is disposed at a car exterior side so that a C-letter like recess opens toward a car interior side. With this, it can be easy to fix the base plate for the motor, brackets and so on to the rear plate of the module frame by spot welding or fastening. Namely, a door equipment can easily be fixed to the module frame.
From the viewpoint that the C-letter like elongated member in cross section as the module frame is preferable in order to satisfy both requirements of (1) the securing of a predetermined strength-rigidity and (2) weight saving, the second inventions are inventions having the following structure. An automobile door comprising a door main body having a housing portion which is disposed adjacent to a window opening of an automobile and is capable of housing a windowpane for opening and closing the window opening and a door module housed in the housing portion and attached to the door main body, wherein the door module comprises the windowpane, a door equipment including at least a regulator having a motor for moving the windowpane between the window opening and the housing portion, and a module frame on which the door equipment is integrally held, and wherein the module frame is made of a C-letter like elongated member in cross section, which has a rear plate disposed at a car exterior side and a pair of side plates extending at a car interior side from the rear plate so as to be spaced apart from each other, and an automobile door module used for the automobile door.
According to such automobile door and door module, the module frame has the C-letter like form, which has the rear plate and the pair of side plates extending from the rear plate, whereby the strength of the module frame can be improved while the weight increasing can be suppressed. Since the rear plate in the portion of the C-letter like form in cross section of the module frame is disposed at a car exterior side, and the space between the pair of side plates extending toward a car interior side is provided, in other words, the car interior side surface of the module frame is opened, it is easy to fix the rear plate to the door equipment by spot welding or fastening. Namely, the fixing of the door equipment to the module frame can be easy.
The module frame can be formed by bending a single C-letter like elongated member in cross section having a rear plate and a pair of side plates extending from the rear plate. For example, a single elongated member is formed by extrusion-molding aluminum so that a rear plate and side plates extending from the rear plate are provided, whereby a C-letter like recess defined by the rear plate and both side plates can be formed. Then, the elongated member is cut with a predetermined length (a length in substantially agreement with the entire circumferential length of the module frame). By bending the cut elongated member into a predetermined shape, the module frame is formed. It is preferable to form the module frame by bending a single elongated member because the number of parts can be reduced in comparison with a case that the module frame is formed by connecting a plurality of elongated members.
From the viewpoint of forming the module frame satisfying the requirements of (1) the securing of a predetermined strength.rigidity and (2) weight saving, by bending a single elongated member or connecting a plurality of elongated members, the third inventions are inventions having the structure described below. An automobile door comprising a door main body having a housing portion which is disposed adjacent to a window opening of an automobile and is capable of housing a windowpane for opening and closing the window opening and a door module housed in the housing portion and attached to the door main body, wherein the door module comprises the windowpane, a door equipment including at least a regulator having a motor for moving the windowpane between the window opening and the housing portion, and a module frame on which the door equipment is integrally held, and wherein the module frame is made of an elongated member having a substantially annularly formed portion in a side view; an end portion of the elongated member is disposed in the vicinity of the connected portion of the elongated member; a bracket as a separate body which serves as a fitting member for fitting the module frame to the door main body is attached to the end portion and the connected portion, and the end portion is connected to the connected portion by means of the bracket, and an automobile door module used for the automobile door.
In this automobile door module and door, the connection of the end portion of the elongated member to the connected member (e.g., the other end portion of the elongated member) is conducted by means of the bracket. Accordingly, even though a single elongated member is shorter than a predetermined dimension, a dimensional error can be absorbed by the bracket, and the bracket can be placed at the correct position.
Such automobile door module and door can certainly be attached to the door main body. Further, in such automobile door module and door, the door equipment can correctly be placed on the door main body, without requiring a high dimensional accuracy to the elongated member.
The automobile door module and door of the third inventions include the module frame formed by bending an elongated member in a predetermined shape. In particular, the module frame is useful in a case that an only single elongated member is bent in a predetermined shape. Namely, when an elongated member is bent, for instance, when an extruded aluminum member having a predetermined thickness or a special shape in cross section is bent, there is a case that the bending operation is difficult due to the rigidity of the elongated member. The difficulty in the bending operation may easily cause a reduction in accuracy in the bent shape by the reason that the position to be bent is not an intended position. Accordingly, the shape formed by bending the elongated member does sometimes not agree with a predetermined shape of the module frame in a side view. On the other hand, even when the shape formed by bending the elongated member does not agree with a predetermined shape of the module frame in a side view, the bracket can be placed at the correct position by connecting the end portion of the elongated member to the connected portion by means of the bracket.
Accordingly, when the module frame, in which error in the shape in a side view is apt to occur, is formed by bending an elongated member, the application of the automobile door module, door according to the third inventions, or the method for producing these according to the third inventions are useful. The error in the shape in a side view is, in particular, apt to occur when the module frame is formed by bending a single elongated member. Accordingly, the application of the automobile door module or door according to the third inventions is, in particular, useful when the module frame is formed by a single elongated member.
From the viewpoint of satisfying requirements of (1) the securing a predetermined strength-rigidity and (2) weight saving by using a C-letter like elongated member in cross section, and from the viewpoint of making the processing of the door module easy by forming the module frame with a plurality of elongated members, the fourth inventions are inventions having the structure described below. An automobile door comprising a door main body having a housing portion which is disposed adjacent to a window opening of an automobile and is capable of housing a windowpane for opening and closing the window opening and a door module housed in the housing portion and attached to the door main body, wherein the door module comprises the windowpane, a door equipment including at least a regulator having a motor for moving the windowpane between the window opening and the housing portion, and a module frame on which the door equipment is integrally held, and wherein the module frame is formed to have an annular form in a side view, by connecting a plurality of elongated members wherein in the elongated members, at least a lower frame member which forms a lower side of the module frame is made of a C-letter like member in cross section, which has a first rear plate disposed at a car exterior side and a pair of first side plates extending at a car interior side from the first rear plate so as to be spaced apart from each other, and the shape in cross section in an arranged state of an upper frame member other than the lower frame member in the elongated members is different from the shape in cross section in an arranged state of the lower frame member, and an automobile door module used for the automobile door.
xe2x80x9cThe shape in cross section in a state of arrangement is differentxe2x80x9d means that in a state that the module frame is formed, the shapes in cross section including the direction of the arranged upper frame member and lower frame member are different. Namely, there is a case that the shape in cross section of the upper frame member is different from the shape in cross section of the lower frame member in view from any direction, or a case that although the shape in cross section of the upper frame member and the shape in cross section of the lower frame member are the same when the directions of them are aligned, only the directions of them in cross section in a state that they are assembled into the module frame are different. For example, there is a case that the shape in cross section of the upper frame member is a C-letter like shape as well as the lower frame member, and the direction of the extension of a side plate of the upper frame member is different from the direction of the extension of the lower frame member. Such case is included in the case of xe2x80x9cthe shape in cross section in a state of arrangement is differentxe2x80x9d. For the lower frame member, a linear shape in a side view can be used. Further; a curved shape or a bent shape in a side view can be employed.
According to the automobile door and door module of the fourth inventions, the number of times of bending operations to a single elongated member can be reduced, and the bending operation can be easy because a plurality of elongated member are connected so that the module frame is formed to have an annular form in a side view. For the lower frame member, a C-letter like elongated member in cross section, which has the first rear plate and the pair of first side plates extending from the first rear plate, is used, whereby the strength of the module frame can be improved while weight increasing can be suppressed.
Further, since the first rear plate of the lower frame member is disposed at a car exterior side and the pair of first side plates extending toward a car interior side are spaced apart, in other words, the car interior side surface of the lower frame member is opened, the fixing of the rear plate to the upper frame member and so on can be easily conducted by spot welding or fastening with a bolt. Accordingly, the automobile door provides a high producibility, an improvement of the strength while an increasing of weight and a completed assembling work can be suppressed, as well as providing reliable operation to the door equipment.
In the automobile door and door module of the fourth inventions, it is preferable that the upper frame member is made of a C-letter like member in cross section, which has a second rear plate arranged at a car interior side and a pair of second side plates extending at a car exterior side from the second rear plate so as to be spaced apart from each other, and the second rear plate of the upper frame member is joined to the first rear plate of the lower frame member. By such, it can be easy to fix the rear plate of the C-letter like upper frame member in cross section having an opened car exterior side surface to the rear plate of the C-letter like lower frame member in cross section having an opened car interior side surface by spot welding or fastening with a bolt. When the module frame is formed by connecting two elongated members having the same shape in a side view, such as a substantially L-letter like or U-letter like shape in a side view, for instance, the module frame having an annular shape in a side view is easily obtainable. An intermediate frame member or a connecting member may be provided between the upper frame member and the lower frame member of the module frame to connect them. When the intermediate frame member is provided, the module frame is constituted by three or more elongated members. In consideration of obtaining easiness for forming the module frame and providing a high strength to it, it is preferable to form the module frame by using two elongated members as the upper frame member and the lower frame member.
In the above-mentioned inventions, it is preferable to use a wire type regulator as the regulator. The wire type regulator is provided with a rail which is extended along a direction of the vertical movement of the windowpane, in order to guide a carrier plate which supports the windowpane. By fixing, for instance, a lower end of the rail to, for instance, an inner panel of the door main body, the strength of the door module can be improved. The technical concept of these inventions can easily be realized by using the wire type regulator.